Anonymous, Apollodorus Bibliotheca [The Library of Apollodorus]

Stefano Acerbo (Università di Pisa)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

The anonymous

Bibliotheca

(“Library”) is the only substantial ancient account of heroic genealogies to have survived from antiquity almost intact. It narrates key Greek mythical events from the birth of the earliest gods to the Achaeans’ return from Troy. In many cases the work preserves tales in a more complete form than those preserved in other ancient texts, and occasionally it provides the sole evidence for a myth or variant. By virtue of its wealth of detail it is a crucial source for scholars interested in Greek mythology and religion, but it is also widely used to reconstruct the contents of lost ancient works. The consistent manner in which mythical traditions are arranged and the transparency of its plain prose led to the work’s preservation and popularity not only among…

3189 words

Citation: Acerbo, Stefano. "Apollodorus Bibliotheca". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 April 2017 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=35905, accessed 13 December 2024.]

35905 Apollodorus Bibliotheca 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.